Days 12-13: Genesis 45-50

Summaries:
Joseph reveals his identity to his brothers and sends them home to bring the whole family to Egypt, and Jacob is thrilled at the news (45). On the road to Egypt, God assures Jacob not to be afraid. Jacob and his descendants are listed, and then Joseph greets his father and brothers (46). Pharaoh allows Joseph's family to settle in the land, and Joseph continues to deal with the famine over the people (47). Jacob blesses Joseph's sons as his own (Ephraim and Manasseh), assuring them that God will bless them too (48). Jacob speaks of each of his sons, and then dies (49). As was promised, his sons bury him with Abraham and Isaac. Joseph's brothers make sure that Joseph has forgiven them, and Joseph assured them that all is forgiven and they will be provided for. Before his death, Joseph assures his brothers that God will be with them (50).

Reflections:
There is so much good in Joseph's story. The forgiveness of his brothers, the reuniting of Jacob with his son, the continuation of God's covenant from Jacob to Joseph and then the hopes of future generations. It is great to see how God blessed his people and made them his own. And I love how God took something horrible such as Joseph's brothers' attempt to kill him and turned it into a means to provide for the people, and even for those bothers, and Joseph recognizes this. It makes me think about the two years of my life after graduating from college, searching for a job with my degree, I would get frustrated with not getting hired here or there, but I tried to think that God had somebody else for each position, and God had something different/better for me. It wasn't easy, but now that I've found a job, I can look back on the past two years and see how God was preparng me for this, and that there was a lot of good in those two years.

Quotes:
Gen. 50:19-21 "Have no fear. Can I take the place of God? Even though you meant harm to me, God meant it for good, to achieve his present end, the survival of many people. Therefore have no fear." (Joseph, to his brothers who begged for forgiveness and asked to be his slaves).